Racer X is an uncommon Double India Pale Ale which puts a California twist on English brewing traditions by adding an assertive hop aroma and bitterness that compliments the firm malt backbone. Like its little brother Racer 5, Racer X is balance in a bottle.

Pours a clear reddish orange, very bright, thick off white head forms, slowly drops to a thick layer and ring leaving a ton of lace on the glass, looks real nice. Smell is great, very hoppy, some yeast, grapefruit, floral, toasty malt, caramel, orange peel, pine, very hoppy but balanced. Taste is similar, caramel sweetness and toast, grapefruit and orange, pine, floral, some light fruit, pineapple, lightly sugary, big bitterness but perfectly balance and complex. Mouthfeel is medium bodied with low to medium carbonation. Damn do BR make balanced DIPAs! This reminds me a bit of Apex in that its super complex but perfectly balanced, very good stuff. I could certainly put down quite a few pints. Thanks Carl! (782 characters)

A very big thanks to tpd975 who shared this at a tasting I randomly showed up at in Tampa. I have always wanted to try this beer. Pours a deep burnt orange color with a decent with head resting atop. Heads sticks around a while, and has the requisite lacing from a well made beer. A very strong earthy/pine hops aroma, and not sure if this was due to its journey, but a bit of a sour aroma too. What the beer lacked in hop aroma was made up in the taste, strong hops here. Well made in that the hops are balance with a strong malt backbone. Medium mouthfeel, but none of that dry hop aftertaste makes this very drinkable for a style that can many times not be. (660 characters)

A- Racer X is a amber color with some orange spots within. Last year when I had this the head was gigantic and expanding and the best i've seen on a DIPA. This year there was only a mere skim of foam on the top, leaving minimal lace.

S- Big citrus up front with nice grsapefruit and a bit of orange. A big hoppy nose with the malt keeping up. Getting some pine as well with a bitter smell.

T- Great stuff. The hops literally take charge and give off a huge citrus blast on the tounge. This includes grapefruit. Pines are up front as well but to a lesser extent. Big malts to give off a balance but dont reaslly come through in the taste. This is bitter all around.

M- A step above medium in feel with a nice crisp carb addition. After a while the bitterness reallly got to me though. This also has somewhat of an oily feel. I probably would have got blasted away if I took large gulps, so I sipped it.

D- A nice ABV not to high but one pint of this is enough for me. This is a hop bomb and a bit off balanced, a bit more malt would have helped. I will drink this again though, just have to be in the mood. (1,148 characters)

At first glance this impressive beer has a great orange, amber hue with great clarity. Lacing is tight and the head is frothy. Nose is a combo of orange blossom, pine, baked bread and malty sweetness that is not overpowering but balanced. From the first sip to the lasting finish it is a big beer that is amazingly balanced.

T: A little backwards from what I'm used to, but it works here. Initial taste is big and sweeping malt flavor - adds a real heaviness to the taste. Malt thick sweetness up front. Big malt bill here. Next comes a big wallop of piney bittering hops. Big bitter flavor that lasts midway through, right to the finish. Grapefruit profile doesn't come out until the finish, but lingers nicely - especially in your beer burps!

A: This beer looks amazing. Super fluffy/oily cream white 1 finger head that seems to sit atop the beer like a thick blanket. It never goes away the whole time I drink it. The beer is a beautiful medium orange/rust color and laces the glass pretty well.

S: Smell is strong of hops, specifically I smell flavors of mangoes pineapples in this one. Extremely nice, and complex to boot.

T: Taste follows the nose especially in the pineapple on the back side. I don't like that it is more bitter than I'd care for though. Unfortunate because I simply can't knock ANYTHING else about this beer. It just finishes a little bitter for me. Maybe slightly colder I would have preferred it more, but it was served to me around 50 degrees.

M: Absolutely world class. Creamy, oily, perfect weight. No complaints whatsoever. One of the best in this category I've ever had.

D: Hurt by the bitterness, but don't get me wrong. I really loved it. An outstanding DIPA.

Don't miss this if you have a chance to get it. Truly one of the best DIPA's I've had or beers I've had for that matter in many categories. (1,210 characters)

After hearing some of the worst words in beerdom, 'you're 15 minutes late for Pliny', the world-class barkeep suggested Racer X. Nice call, Cory. Minimal one finger head (no short pours here, Brother) with ebony body. Very prominent malt aroma with resiny hops pushed to the background. Sweet brown bread with caramel notes and complex hops on the taste buds, minimal pine character. Smooth mouthfeel with minimal carbonation. At this ABV more of a sipper than a session beer, but it does taste good. To be honest, while it may sound sacrilegious, this reminded me a bit of HOTD Fred (!). Another fine Bear Republic brew, highly recommended for DIPAheads. (683 characters)

I had this beer today at Falling Rock Tap House in Denver. I had 2- 16 oz pints. This is a great beer and I will definitly go back and drink it again. Great mouth feel, great smell and very drinkable. Even though it is 9%, you are not overwhelmed by the alcohol. Racer X is great from start to finish. (301 characters)

thanks Ed and Aaron for the free pints of this rare treat! dark copper transparent pour, healthy light tan head, lacing all over the place. the smell, super piney, with a toffee, caramel backbone. hella hoppy nose! sniffed this one for a minute before diving in.chewy as hell toffee on the taste, followed by pine resin bite. tastes a bit boozey, surprised to hear this is only 9 percent, would've guessed around 11 from the taste. sticky icky! coats the tongue with hoppy goodness that just wont let go. definitely top notch DIPA, over the top (turned my hat backwards) hops and malty chewiness! (599 characters)

Occasionally, there comes a gent kind enough to send you a wanted beer for nothing. Carl is one of them. Thanks, man!

A: Deep copper with amber highlights. A thick, off-white head caps this beer, leaving lace as it slowly subsides.

S: Holy hops, batman! A riot of juicy pine and citrus, with just immaculate aroma. Mild maltiness is perceived on the nose, this one's very very hoppy, though

T: Opens up with plenty of juicy hops, pine in nature with a LOT of flavor before a comparatively mild bitterness kicks in, along with flavors of candied orange and tangerine. Sweet caramel malts meld beautifully with the pine hops mid palate, before a dry and resiny finish takes over.

M: On the heavier side of light-bodied, the carbonation in this week+ old growler's held up very well. The resin character on the finish is gorgeous!

D: With all of 22oz in this one, I'm going to be sad when it's gone. The low ABV really enhances the drinkability, too (951 characters)

Thanks to goryshkewych for sending this my way. Counter pressure bottle filled from Bierkraft was poured into my Sam Adams glass. It produced a gorgeous white fluffy head that settled to a thick lace. The lace follows the clear golden copper body down the glass.

It has a wonderfully sweet hoppy fragrance coming from this glass. I must say the obligatory grapefruit, grassy comparison comes to mind but that may not be doing the fragrance justice.

It is a nice bitter DIPA the flavors follows the nose. The caramel sweetness from the malts and the hops blend extremely well. It really is a well balanced West cost DIPA WOW Something I would not expect. The slight alcohol heat is an extra dimension added to this brew. Carbonation is great and the feel is somewhat light which make this the ideal feel in my mouth.

This brew could be dangerous if I could get my hands on more than just this bottle I could easily drink mass quantities of it. A surprisingly great balanced DIPA from the west cost. Keep it up Bear Republic another great brew from you guys (1,059 characters)

22oz bierkraft 'growler'. Pours a hazy coppery orange in color with a good sized cream colored head, laces nicely as consumed. Aroma is some nice piney and peppery hoppiness along with some citrusy hop aromas of orange rind, tangerine, grapefruit. Taste shows a nice caramel malty body that blends well with some orange and tangerine, before a crisp turn to pepperiness and bitterness mixed with a piney flavor in the finish. Mouthfeel is outstanding, medium in body, nice malty body is perfectly proportionate in that it never takes the front seat but is big enough to balance the beer without becoming too sweet or syrupy. Some tingling pepperiness on the tongue is followed by a very nice rush of drying and puckery bitterness. abv is well hidden. Overall a very good beer, this particular examples mouthfeel stood out most for me and is what helped to make it a highly drinkable dipa. Thanks to one of my favorite traders for this sample, thanks G! (952 characters)

Draught at The Red in Santa Cruz. Clear brown. Bursting hop aroma with flowers, orange and grapefruit. The flavor is pretty sweet; a little more so than the hops can rightly dominate. Bitter and flavorful hops play with the sweetness of the malt. Pretty nice stuff, but not the target dipa for me. (3.7) Rerate: Draught at the red. Orange/amber color with a sticky head. Oily, citrus and sap aroma that screams fresh, juicy hops. The flavor has a moderate malt sweetness that is pretty pale, with some light caramel and toasted malt. The hops are very green and oily, with a strong Orange/grapefruit and light tropical flavor. Bitterness is pretty modest in balance with the malt sweetness, just enough to win out in the end. Medium-full body with tight carbonation. Nice oily and citrucy DIPA. The balance makes this pretty drinkable as well. (843 characters)

Sat in the globe glass as a pretty orange/amber with a sizable off-white head. Super-spidery lacing was impressive.

All sorts of piny, earthy scents mingling in the nose of this beer. Lots of pollen-like, flowery notes on the finish. It certainly entices the senses in the way that you expect an IIPA to. It smells a lot like Bell's Two Hearted Ale, actually.

Yup. Goldmine of tasty goodness. Pine dominates at first, but subsequent quaffing yields a good deal of mustiness. This is loaded with earthy hop flavors, so much so that the citrus seems relatively subdued. The toasted malt isn't overshadowed, somehow, leading to a (sort of) balanced finish. Superb.

Not too thick or thin as far as mouthfeel; I guess that if you don't notice it, then its doing its job. I only had one of these, but I wish I had more. I could have enjoyed them, as this is one tasty and smoooth IIPA.

What Bell's HopSlam is to citrus in IIPAs, Bear Republic Racer X is to earthiness. Its pretty fantastic, and I'm very glad that the guys at Flying Saucer brought this in to KC. (1,095 characters)

This beer was presented in a 10oz globe glass. It is a dark, burnt orange amber with a massive, white rocky head that leaves some of the craziest lacing I have ever seen. The aroma is pine, caramel, toffee, a bit of vanilla, grapefruit and fresh pine needles. This could very well be the most piny IPA I've ever had but the hop varieties still show through. its not just pine. The flavor is crazy hoppy. Huge pine notes coat the palate, then the malt backbone hits with caramel and vanilla, the bitter rinds of grapefruit show itself. This is really a phenomenal DIPA. Hoppy yet balanced. The mouthfeel is full and coats your mouth with a bitter resin. I know understand why this is such a highly touted beer. (739 characters)

Props to the BA who supplied this growler at the May tasting (I think it was thickerfreakness; if so then thanks Charles)! Been wanting to try this one for a while.

Pours a beautiful, deep golden-copper hue with interspersed trails of carbonation. A pillowy cap of custard foam crescendos at 2" in height and slowly recedes to a thick cap, leaving sexy webs of lacing along the inside of the glass. Aroma reeks of resinous, piny, sticky hop cones, with a superb balance of toffee, caramel malt, and Sugar Daddy candies.

The flavor surpasses my expectations; IIPA's really don't get much better than this. A perfectly balance of pine-laden hops and toffee malt coats the palate, while the greenery leaves a lasting bitterness along the finish. Body is medium-thick, but not overbearing in the slightest. Perfect carbonation and a chewy, creamy body that never turns syrupy. All in all, Racer X is a fantastic beer...I rave about Bear Republic's Racer 5, but Racer X just takes it to another level. More please! (1,011 characters)

pour was deep copper with about an inch of white head. nice retention and nice lacing.

big scents, very piney and very citrus, light sweet caramel.

taste as dominant with pine and bitterness, slight citrus. strong malt backbone. alcohol was too present from start through finish. very bitter finish

very full, low to medium carbonation. very smooth and very easy going

low drinkability because of the strong alcohol flavor. this was a slow sipper and a one time deal in a sitting. i've been wanting to try this forever but as sort of let down by this. i expected less alcohol. its only 9% but drinks like a 12%.

overall, good DIPA. i would drink this again based on rarity so this is special to come across. (764 characters)